UCLA baseball begins its NCAA Tournament run Friday night in the NCAA Los Angeles Regional, which will be played in the Bruins’ home park, Jackie Robinson Stadium. The regional includes three unranked teams – Cal State Bakersfield, Maryland and Ole Miss – along with UCLA, the top-seeded team in the NCAA Tournament.
To win the regional, one of the four teams mentioned above will need to win three games without losing more than one. The regional holds a double-elimination format.
Here’s a scouting report of each of the three teams UCLA (42-14, 22-8 Pac-12) will be pitted against in the regional.
Cal State Bakersfield (36-22)
The Roadrunners are the Bruins’ first opponent, and the lowest-seeded team in this four-team regional. They made it to the NCAAs by way of winning the Western Athletic Conference tournament this past weekend.
Cal State Bakersfield plays a similar style of game as UCLA, relying mostly on pitching instead of offense to earn victories. That plays to the Bruins’ advantage, as no team executes the pitching-oriented style of play as well as UCLA, which owns the top ERA in the country.
The Roadrunners hold a respectable rank in ERA – No. 59 in the nation – but they are No. 257 in home runs per game, No. 199 in slugging percentage and No. 116 in on-base percentage. The lighter-hitting Roadrunners should be no match for the Bruins’ ace and the Pac-12’s strikeout champion, junior James Kaprielian, on Friday.
Maryland (39-21)
Maryland has one of the best starting pitchers in the country in right hander Mike Shawaryn. The 6-foot-3-inch sidearmer finished No. 2 in the nation with 12 wins, No. 19 with an ERA of 1.65 and No. 21 with an average of 10.8 strikeouts per nine innings.
But Maryland’s pitching staff is basically a one-man enterprise, as the Terps only have one pitcher other than Shawaryn who has more than seven starts on the year. That starter – Brian Shaffer – has a 4.73 ERA in 59 innings pitched.
As for the offensive side, Maryland has an above-average, but not standout offense. The Terps rank No. 60 in the nation in scoring, No. 83 in on-base percentage and No. 70 in slugging percentage. UCLA ranks No. 75, No. 82 and No. 62 in those respective categories.
With the offenses almost equal, UCLA’s superior pitching depth should give the Bruins the advantage.
Ole Miss (30-26)
While Maryland has one of the best pitchers in the country, Ole Miss has one of the nation’s top power hitters. Senior first baseman Sikes Orvis led the Southeastern Conference this year with 16 home runs, which is tied for No. 10 in the country.
Outside of Orvis, however, Ole Miss has a relatively average offense. The Rebels rank No. 157 in scoring, No. 128 in on-base percentage and No. 151 in slugging percentage.
Ole Miss’ pitching staff isn’t much better, ranking No. 144 in the country with a 4.44 ERA.
Compiled by Matthew Joye, Bruin Sports senior staff.